Productivity push could end Bangladesh garment woe

If Bangladesh wants to stop Western clothing brands and retailers from shifting their sourcing elsewhere, factory owners must improve productivity so they can afford higher wages and bring an end to recurrent labour unrest, industry experts believe.

If Bangladesh wants to stop Western clothing brands and retailers from shifting their sourcing elsewhere, factory owners must improve productivity so they can afford higher wages and bring an end to recurrent labour unrest, industry experts believe.

Bangladesh's woven garment exports grew by nearly 12% in July despite the economic meltdown in the United States and the European Union, a senior official said on Monday (13 August) - although there was little change in knitwear shipments.

Bangladesh's garment makers are talking with the International Labour Organization (ILO) to try to establish better industrial relations between workers and factory managers by implementing the Better Work Programme.

Compliance, while an excellent idea in theory, is fundamentally flawed, argues David Birnbaum. What was originally an honest effort to make the industry more socially responsible has resulted in a situation where neither the very worst factories are penalised nor the very best factories protected. Here he offers some solutions.

Sweden's Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) has told just-style that global clothing brands are pressing the Bangladesh government to establish "a forum where buyers can raise concerns and discuss current topics", following waves of labour unrest.